Recently, recognition that an essence of an oyster meat is an extremely superior product including many beneficial substances as a dietary supplement product is growing day by day.
Currently, for example, a dietary supplement product or similar product regarding an oyster meat essence extracted by a wide variety of extraction methods has come to be sold (Patent document 1).
Especially, among minerals, whose insufficient dietary intake has become a problem, trace elements of taurine, zinc, and selenium are indispensable for humans, but is prone to being missed. Accordingly, taking in an appropriate amount of the minerals in daily living habits is desired.
Diabetes is a disease that weakens an action of “insulin”, which is a hormone reducing a blood sugar, and abnormally increases sugar content in blood due to insufficient insulin. Minerals, such as zinc and selenium, help “action of blood sugar reduction” performed by this insulin. As these minerals are said to “have an insulin action”, it is recognized that actually replenishing these minerals to a diabetes patient reduces the blood-sugar level of the diabetes patient. The oyster meat incorporates a large amount of these active ingredients.
To extract the essence of the oyster meat incorporating a large amount of the active ingredient, the following is desired. The oyster meat essence that richly incorporates human body-friendly minerals such as zinc and selenium required for the human body nowadays and beneficial substances, for example, vitamin, taurine, glycogen, and protein in a balanced manner is efficiently extracted. Additionally, a good oyster meat essence is produced. The inventors have continuously invented methods for producing the oyster meat essence satisfying these requirements and obtained patents on the method.
Recently, it has been confirmed that the oyster meat also incorporates a large amount of antioxidant substance with a so-called high antioxidative property, which has recently attracted attention. The inventors of the present invention further clarify the above-described matters through various studies and experiments by the inventors of the present invention. Especially, development of a method for producing an oyster meat essence that more amply incorporates a large amount of antioxidant substance with a high antioxidative potency and ORAC value has been strongly desired.
Especially, the inventors of the present invention have recently been studying on the portion of the oyster meat including a large amount of the antioxidant substance with a high antioxidative potency and ORAC value, and the method for extracting the oyster meat essence that incorporates a large amount of antioxidant substance with a high antioxidative potency and ORAC value. The inventors have been conducting inventive and creative activities regarding the production method where an oyster meat extract incorporating a large amount of antioxidant substance with a high antioxidative potency and ORAC value can be efficiently extracted, that is, the production method where the oyster meat essence incorporating a large amount of antioxidant substance with a high antioxidative potency and ORAC value can be appropriately extracted and produced.
So-called reactive oxygen is generated by aerobic life and causes oxidation of lipid, protein, and nucleic acid, thus damaging a cell. Usually, the oxidation level of a living body is maintained substantially constant by a balance between a reactive oxygen producing system and a scavenging system using an antioxidant substance. The balance is lost due to various factors such as drugs, radiation, ischemia, or similar cause. An inclination to the reactive oxygen producing system is referred to as oxidant stress.
It is considered that accumulation of this oxidant stress is one cause of various diseases such as cancer, arteriosclerotic disease, an ischemia/reperfusion injury, chronic rheumatoid arthritis, diabetes, a neurological disorder such as an Alzheimer's disease and a Parkinson's disease; and aging.
An oyster, for example, Crassostreagigas is a bivalve belonging to a family Ostreidae in the order Pterioida. The habitat covers the entire East Asia region including Japan. Nowadays, the Crassostreagigas is also cultivated in France and Australia, and is renowned as the most eaten oyster in the world. Since it is highly nutritious, the oyster has been used for food since ancient times. As described above, the oyster meat essence extracted from the oyster meat includes a large amount of minerals such as calcium, zinc, selenium, copper, manganese, or similar material as well as glycogen and protein. Furthermore, the oyster meat essence incorporates the large amount of the antioxidant substance with the high antioxidative potency and ORAC value.
As a value indicating the extent of the antioxidative potency, a so-called ORAC value is generally used. The ORAC value, for example, is said to be a value extremely frequently used for food product and supplement typically in the United States of America. In other words, the ORAC value is a value of “Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity”. The ORAC value is an index made by analyzing, and converting into a numerical value, to what extent a food product or supplement has “the power to absorb reactive oxygen (antioxidative potency).” That is why the ORAC value is said to be a value indicating strength of antioxidative potency.
The reactive oxygen is one kind of so-called free radical and is generated when oxygen is taken up by respiration. If the reactive oxygen in a body increases too much due to illumination with ultraviolet light, stress, smoking, or similar cause, the cell is damaged. This is said to be a cause of wrinkles, liver spots, and other aging, and a cause of lifestyle-related disease such as diabetes.
Daily taking in a food product with a high antioxidative potency or similar product is a key to remove reactive oxygen, which is a cause of aging.
The “ORAC value” is a reference for taking in the food product with a high antioxidative potency. The higher the value, the higher the antioxidative potency is. Taking the food product with the high ORAC value allows protection from aging and a disease.    [Patent document 1] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. H10-136946